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REVIEW: FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH - THE WRONG SIDE OF HEAVEN AND THE RIGHTEOUS SIDE OF HELL, VOL. 1 8/20/2013
Gweedo
Have you ever rocked so hard it could not be contained on a CD? Me either, but I know someone who has – Five Finger Death Punch. They released The Wrong Side of Heaven and the Righteous Side of Hell, Volume 1, their fourth CD, with Volume 2 coming out later this year. Obviously, these guys were on a roll. The album name is a mouth full but an interesting statement. I think this album has some of Five Finger’s best work on it, as does most everyone else. It debuted as the #1 Rock album globally and #2 on Billboard 200, selling 112,000 records the 1st week. I believe that makes this their most successful album to date. They brought on special guests Rob Halford of Judas Priest, Maria Brink of In This Moment, Tech N9ne, Max Cavalera of Soulfly and Sepultura, and Jamey Jasta of Hatebreed. Also, this is the first album to have bassist Chris Kael on it. I have put in some of solid hours listening to this CD, and it is great start to finish. My assumptions with the plans of there being two volumes are: 1) There would be a lot of filler, and 2) There would be very few tracks. To my surprise, there are 14 tracks that are as lean as Chris Kael! The tracks are heavy, energetic, and powerful. Everyone did excellent on the CD.
Gweedo
Have you ever rocked so hard it could not be contained on a CD? Me either, but I know someone who has – Five Finger Death Punch. They released The Wrong Side of Heaven and the Righteous Side of Hell, Volume 1, their fourth CD, with Volume 2 coming out later this year. Obviously, these guys were on a roll. The album name is a mouth full but an interesting statement. I think this album has some of Five Finger’s best work on it, as does most everyone else. It debuted as the #1 Rock album globally and #2 on Billboard 200, selling 112,000 records the 1st week. I believe that makes this their most successful album to date. They brought on special guests Rob Halford of Judas Priest, Maria Brink of In This Moment, Tech N9ne, Max Cavalera of Soulfly and Sepultura, and Jamey Jasta of Hatebreed. Also, this is the first album to have bassist Chris Kael on it. I have put in some of solid hours listening to this CD, and it is great start to finish. My assumptions with the plans of there being two volumes are: 1) There would be a lot of filler, and 2) There would be very few tracks. To my surprise, there are 14 tracks that are as lean as Chris Kael! The tracks are heavy, energetic, and powerful. Everyone did excellent on the CD.
The first single, “Lift Me Up”, was a pleasant surprise. It has a solid drive to it and seems to have the tone of wanting to be lifted above all the negativity and pressure that people put on you. Guitarist Jason Hook has a fast little solo in it that really fits. I was blown away when Rob Halford started singing a third of the way into the song. It just sounded so great. I feel like if Mr. Halford ever wanted another side project that joining up with Five Finger Death Punch would produce an awesome CD. The band has immense respect for him, and Rob said that Five Finger Death Punch was his favorite new band. Their second single, “Wrong Side of Heaven”, is a nice boundary stretch for the group. There are a lot of different sounds used instrumentally with a soft melody. It just shows that the group is not afraid to expand, open up, and grow instead of always having face pounding metal.
As for the rest of the tracks, I feel like they really round out the CD. The two singles are very different, and the other tracks fill in the gaps. “Watch You Bleed” has a cool mix of acoustic and heavy guitar but then gets into heavy riffs and pounding drums. Drummer Jeremy Spencer does a great job with the rhythm, keeping it heavy and driving without over powering the song. Singer Ivan Moody gets a workout with “You”. He does some good growling but just spews out a rhythm of lyrics without breathing. The song is very aggressive and in your face. Chris Kael said this is one of his favorite songs on the CD that is more Way Of The Fist style. Kael has some cool bass slides in it. The CD goes onto some more anger with “Burn MF”. This track is really simple but gets you pumped up. Next, Moody has some nice chorus work in “I.M. Sin”, which also has a bonus version featuring Max Cavalera. The bonus version is pretty much the same musically, but Cavalera sings some verses in Portuguese, which is unique. Another track, “Anywhere But Here”, Maria Brink is featured. In the regular version, she kind of laces the track with her essence, which is a waste of talent in my opinion. I do not agree with the way that Brink has been treating her fans recently, but that does not negate that she is a fantastic singer. Luckily, there was a bonus version of the song made that is an actual duet between Moody and Brink. It is outstanding. Trash the first version, and just go with the bonus. She does great with her soaring vocals over Moody’s gruff voice. This is definitely a stand out track. Ivan’s favorite Five Finger song and my favorite on the CD is “Dot Your Eyes”. It is a fun, silly track. Jeremy has a simple beat, but the song has a good groove that gets you moving. This also has a bonus version that features Jamey Jasta. I think it is a cool version that adds a little bit different dynamic. “M.I.N.E. (End This Way)” is a ballad to level out some of the anger. It shows off a softer side to the band, which is pretty much an apology to the ones they have to leave behind while on the road. I like when a hardcore band is able to step back and let their guard down. A very interesting track on this disc is the LL Cool J cover of “Mama Said Knock You Out”. It is typically taboo for rock bands to cover rap songs, but that did not stop guitarist Zoltan Bathory from bringing the riff and idea to the table. It is one of those songs that could bomb or be awesome. Luckily, it turned out awesome. The band members are all fans of Tech N9ne, so they brought him in to help tackle it. I like the heavy deep bass that Kael used. To enhance the track more, Jason Hook found some guitar effects and made his solo sound like turn tables. Finally, an unusual song was “Diary of a Deadman”. It has some nice instrumental work with Ivan just sing talking. Effectively, he is reading from a diary. It is an interesting concept for sure, and I think they did a good job.
The Wrong Side of Heaven and the Righteous Side of Hell, Volume 1 is one of those rare CDs where every track could be a hit. It is one of the best CD’s from Five Finger Death Punch, and I strongly recommend you get it. I had very few bad things to say about it. I do wish that Chris Kael had some bass parts that stood out more, but that is hard when Zoltan and Jason are shredding all over the place. The special guests were good choices and also performed well on the disc. I am very much looking forward to what Volume 2 has in store.
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